Daily forum ____ Is something about Michigan's hockey team bothering you? re you disappointed by the women's gymnastics coverage? Just plain bored? Stop yelling from the sidelines. Speak your mind at rrichigandaily.com/forum. We'll see you there. michigandaily.com/sports ORTS -~. FRIDAY FEBRUARY 23, 2001 9- *Cagers to search for spark against Purdue gymnasts look to,, Pn 'H"mntcman crsrep' %1A04& A AL"A WA By Dan Williams Daily Sports Editor The Michigan men's basketball team is doing everything in its power to block put the cataclysmic events - the Big 'rn Tournament and a decision regard- ing the coaching staff's future - looming in a few weeks. Instead, the team is CRISLER focusing on the last three who: Michigan regular-season contests. Ten, 10.14 ove "I'm not discussing Purdue (59, 1 anything other than When: 3:01 p.r Purdue" Michigan coach latest: The Wo rian Ellerbe told the looks to avenge media at the beginning of loss in West La yesterday's weekly press conference. "I justowant to let you know right off the bat if you have questions about anything else." Michigan will face the Boilermakers n Crisler Arena tomorrow before round- ing out the conference season by hosting Northwestern Wednesday and traveling o Michigan State in eight days. But with a 4-9 Big Ten record (10-14 Cverall), Michigan will need to make a n in the BTT to receive a postseason herth, regardless of the outcome of the next three games. "We're going to win the rest of our games. We don't have a choice," Michigan junior Chris Young said. "If we want to do anything past the Big Ten Tournament, we have to win." The first roadblock in Michigan's path Cers fal t ey Joe Smith Rally Sports Editor SAULT STE. MARIE - When it rains, it pours for the Michigan hockey team. Battling in another must-win game, o. 5 Michigan (15-8-3 CCHA, 21-10-5 verall) gave away crucial points for the third-straight week to a tcam settling in the lower echelon of the CCHA. This time it was a 2-1 loss to hpst-place Lake Superior (8-17-0, 13-20-0). "It's really devastating,"said freshman defenseman Andy Burnes, whose Wolverines are now skidding on a sea- son-high, four-game winless streak (0-3- 1). "We needed this game to get back the iomentum and to get back on track, and to come all the way up here and lose the game -- it's devastating." The loss mathematically eliminated the Wolverines from CCHA title con- tention and clinched the coveted prize for-Michigan State in one fell swoop. A n(4 ra lvi e a afay to a miraculous turnaround is Purdue, which already beat the Wolverines in West Lafayette, 80-60. The Boilermakers (5-9, 13-12) have fallen victim to injuries since that Jan. 3 contest. Forward Rodney Smith, the team's leading scorer, and center John Allison, the team's leading rebounder, are both side- RENA lined with foot injuries. 4-9 Big Purdue coach Gene dt) vs. Keady "is juggling around a 12) lot of different lineups because of those two guys erines being out;' Ellerbe said. a 8460 "They've played without yette. them for a little while now so I think they're getting adjusted a little bit." In the game at Mackey Arena, Smith and Allison combined for 30 points to help thwart the Wolverines. Michigan, which has dropped five of its last six contests, has had a week off to try to change the tide. Following Saturday's 93-75 loss to Minnesota, Ellerbe called some players on his team "immature." "We're going to make some guys grow up pretty quickly and finish the season up with some pride and some character," Ellerbe said in the post-game press conference. If this sentiment resulted in any changes, the team isn't revealing it. "I think we've had some productive practices this week;" Gavin Groninger said. "Not much is different." Slightly more than 22 years ago - February 20, 1979 - the Utah women's gymnastics team lost a home meet to Cal-State Fullerton and Clarion. PROvO The significance? It has- Who: Michige n't lost a home meet since. Utah (6-4) Utah's tumblers hold an when:7:00 p unprecedented streak of test The wt 161 straight wins at home, the roadagan far and away the longest wn 'nat* streak of that nature in tender. Utah c women's gymnastics. bads a 161-rm Tomorrow night, the winning streak Michigan women's team faces the less- than-enviable task of trying to be the first team in over two decades to solve the curse of the Huntsman Center. "This meet is a really exciting oppor- tunity for us," Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. "It would be huge for us to go in there and break that record" In the two weeks since its loss at Florida, Michigan has taken several strides towards righting the ship. A solid showing at Georgia ended ],1 an p.mr intV anal can mee ak. By Cdso UuAo Dily Sporn Writer AAM&.A with a loss, but a win over Southeast Missouri State last Saturday has again established the team as title contenders.- The Wolverines posted their highest score of the year (197.225) against the Otahkians, The day ended with back-to-back perfect UTAH marks on the floor exercise (85) vs. courtesy of Bridget Knaeble and Big Ten gym- a nast of the week Elise RayY ernes hit "To finish like that was o take on very, very exciting, I title con, Knaeble said. "I hit on all rently my new passes and did tei: et home correct last pass, and everyw." thing was, just very exci ing." The intense crowd at Utah usuallyr numbers near 10,000. But Michigan has faced that type of pressure before, at Alabama, Florida and Georgia. "I think at this point of the season, you, get used to it," Plocki said. "My kids getA more excited when there's a big crowd." A streak of 161 straight home wins isr no doubt intimidating. But if everything goes according to: plan, Michigan won't be No. 162. Men lose co-captain Roulston for season, MARJORIE MARSHAL/Daily Brian Ellerbe and the Michigan basketball team are concentrating on what is directly in front of them. Their first hurdle will come against Purdue tomorrow. beat underdog, again Michigan has two games remaining with a slim four-point cushion between it and Miami (Ohio) for second place. But even more devastating than the loss was the way it ended, with a con- troversial goal at the 2:06 mark of the third period. While a mad scramble ensued in front of the Michigan net, a Tyson Turgeon shot from the point clanked off the right post. Or at least that's what the Wolverines thought. Seconds later, referee Brent Rutherford thought otherwise and sig- naled for the eventual game-winning goal after conferring with the goal judge. "If he didn't see it go in, and the lines- man didn't see it go in, and the goal judge didn't turn the light on, it's not a goal;" an animated Michigan coach Red Berenson said after the game. "It's as simple as that" But the game was Michigan's to win for most of the first two periods. The Wolverines tripled the Lakers' shot total early on and created numerous, gift- wrapped scoring chances that they just couldn't finish off. "We should have put them out of the game in the first period," Berenson said. Instead, the Lakers struck first, utiliz- ing a common weapon as of late against Michigan - a powerplay goal. The Lakers' Chris McNamara fought through a check in the corner and beat two Michigan defensemen to the puck before sending a backhand shot past Michigan goalie Josh Blackburn. The Wolverines' Craig Murray answered five minutes into the third peri- od with a powerplay tally of his own. Other than that, the Wolverines couldn't solve Lake Superior goaltender Jayme Platt and the rest of the hungry Lakers that have been snake-bitten this season by several injuries and close defeats. The win "is kind of sweet redemption for a season gone bad," Lake Superior coach Scott Borek said. "We've had so many things we've had to fight through, YESTERDAY'S GAME LAKE SUPERIOR 2, Michigan1 Michigan 0 0 1--1 Lake Superior 0 1 1 - 2 fisst peod - none. Penies- LSSU, McNamara (roug rg) 7:39: UM, Mink (checking from behind) 13:09; LSSU, Nightingale (high stickirg). Second period -1, LSSU McNa4a 6 (Vgiante), 1413 (pp). Penltes -SSU, Toon (roghin),923; UM, Konisarek (roighirg), 12:55; LSSU, Nghtirgaie (high stick- ig)1912 Thundperiod - UM 2, Murray 8 (Kosick, Matzka) 5:36 (pp); LSSU 3. Turge 1(Nightigale, Anderson) 17:54. Pew - LSS.J. McNamara (hoking), 4:52: LSSU, Vince (rough rg), 10:38; UM, Shoneya (high stic rg), 10:38; UM. Hilbert (slashing) 18:47; L.SSU, Nightrgale (roughirg after the whistle) 0,00; UiM, Mazka (ronghirig after the whistle) 0:00: LSSU, Vinice (ronghig after the whistle) 000; UM Koch (roghing after the whistle) 0:00; LSSU, Nightigale (roghing ater the whistle) 0:00;UM, Matzka (roughing after the whistle) O.); LSSU, Vince (rtghi ater the whistle) 0:00: UM Koch (ronghig after the whistle) 0:00; UM Koch (10mhie misconduct) 0:00. Sht ndl- UM, 14-1212 - 38; LSSU, 410144- 28. PoerPlap -UM, 1 o ;5:Lti,1lof 3. Saws -- UMlacktxrn 4413-26; LSSU, Platt 1412-11 -- 37. Referee - Brent Rutherford Unes ten- Tony Crip, Terry Shug At: Taffy Abel Arena Attpiuim: 2,480. I mean sometimes, you don't have enough bullets in your gun - players with injuries and guys playing at 70-per- cent. They got what they deserved tonight, which was a win. Hopefully we can catapult this into a playoff run." By Swapnil Patel Daily Sports Writer Coming of a huge win against No. I Oklahoma, the No. 3 Michigan men's gymnastics team (11-0) Minnesota this weekend to battle the eighth-ranked Gophers. But the fact that Michigan senior tri-captain Kevin Roulston is now officially out for the remainder of this season supercedes any worries about the upcoming meet. Roulston, who suffered heads to " a Y R V l t 4 C F MINNEA Who: Michigan ( Minnesota (2-2) When: 2 p.m. Latest: Michigan to continue its w ways as it Wnesb come the loss of Roulston. year of eligibility. I'm keeping my fin- gers crossed?' The Wolverines will continue to strive for consistency, rather than difficulty, in their routines against the Gophers. "Our attitude is the same as it has been all year and that is to jist go out there and have fun, POLS junior Brad Kenna said. (11-0) vs. After having competed against some top-notch teams around the nation, n will look Michigan will try to avoid a Ninning let down against the to oer- Gophers, especially with >f Kevin the team looking ahead to its spring break trip. "For the Minnesota meet, I think the main focus for this team is just to get through this meet healthy and enjoy our spring break in Spain," junior Scott Vetere said. "We will compete against the Spanish and Portuguese national teams so we want to be ready fo? that meet. "We are definitely not takin. Minnesota too lightly though. They have some good guys on their team and could easily pull an upset if we don't hit." a knee injury prior to Michigan's dual meet against Penn State two weeks ago, had an MRI last week. The results con- firmed the gymnast's worst fear - a completely torn ACL. "The good news is that all the other lig- aments and tendons appear to be fine, as well as the miniscus," Roulston said. "The bad news is that the doctors feel that I shouldn't try to compete on my knee. "We are petitioning for a medical red- shirt, which would grant me another Loss revolves around controversial finish Marathon:12 games in 10 days for 'M' softball After getting shut out twice and blowing a four run lead, the Michigan softball team is thrilled to get out of California. Michigan (2-4) will play 12 games between now until March 4. At the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga., the Wolverines are pit- ted against Georgia, Fresno State and Missouri. After the round-robin tournament, Michigan will play games against Mississippi and Alabama to prepare for the Alabama Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa. On tap for the Wolverines there: Marshall, Evansville, and Alabama. The Crimson Tide are the most for- midable opponents of the bunch, ranked fourth in the nation after an 7 appearance in the College World Series last season. Alabama is 5-0 and led by Shelly Laird who has already recorded four wins. - David Roth 'M'baseball to open its. season In Florida Get out your gloves. Michigan base- ball is about to get underway. The Wolverines will play three games in three days this weekend against in-state rival Western Michigan in Lakeland, Fla. The Broncos took both meetings against the Wolverines a year ago. Broncos' skipper Fred Decker has a little extra incentive to win. A series sweep would take him to 700 career Swimmers in second place after day one MINNEAPOLIS - Defending its 2000 conference title, the Michigan men's swimming and diving team took third position yesterday with 162 points in the first day of the Big Ten Championships. The Wolvienres cur- rently are riding behind Minnesota (241) and Penn State (170). A 2001 title for Michigan may be in jeopardy because of yesterday's lax per- formances in the relays, the 200 individ- ual medley and the 50 freestyle, but Michigan already has one champion. Senior Chris Thompson, who didn't fully taper for the meet, captured his fourth-straight title in the 500 freestyle with a time of 4:16.22. The Wolverines dominated the event with freshman Dan Ketchum touching second and junior Tim Siciliano taking fourth. -Kristen Fidh By Jon Schwartz Daily Sports Editor SAULT STE. MARIE -Yogi Berra once said that he would rather be lucky than good. A little bit of luck went a long way for Lake Superior last night. What started off as a simple shot from the point by Tyson Turgeon of the Lakers turned into a controversial finish that left the Wolverines crying foul. No one knows for sure what hap- pened. Depepding on whom you speak to, the details are going to be very differ- ent. Hockey is, as the NHL likes to call it, "The fastest game on icc" What is a fact is that the goal judge did not light his red light to signal a goal, while the referee, Brent Rutherford, appeared to indicate that a goal had been scored. Play continued, and when the whistle blew at the 2:06 mark of the third period, the melee began. Rutherford called the goal judge, and when his facial expression seemed to imply that the goal would count, Taffy Abel Arena went mad. And the Wolverines just got mad. "I heard it hit the post," Michigan goalie Josh Blackburn said. "I was pretty sure the first shot was a goal just by the sound of it. You could hear it hit the back of the net;" Lake Superior coach Scott Borek said. Replays proved inconclusive. But Borek could understand why Michigan coach Red Berenson, who's seen just about everything in his hockey life, couldn't stand still. "From Michigan's standpoint, if that happened at Yost Ice Arena, I would have thought it was just as bullshit and I would have been talking to (Rutherford) just as long. And I probably would have been calling his mother names." None of the officials would speak to the media as per league rules. "My question is, Berenson said, "why do you phone the goal judge if the goal judge has already not turned the light on? If he thought it went in he would have turned the light on" To further the point that no one knows for sure what happened, Borek without being informed of any of Berenson or the Wolverines' comments, had a response for that, too. "The light went on, initially, and then he turned it off," Borek said. "The tight initially went on which was why we were upset on our side." The light didn't appear to illuminatein. replays. Michigan will submit the issue to the CCHA offices, but will not exactly wait by the phone for a response. "What difference does it make'if we submit it to the league," Berenson said.? "They're not going to change it. It4.j ust a terrible call." FREE MCAT* Strategy and Admissions Event VERBAL WORKSHOP!!! with Albert Chen, Executive Director i